outcomes of the labour household surveys content revie · 6107.0 information paper outcomes of the...

6107.0

Information Paper

Outcomes of the LabourHousehold SurveysContent Review

Australia

2012

AUST R A L I A N BUR E A U OF STA T I S T I C S

EMBA R G O : 11 . 30 A M (CAN B E R R A T IME ) THU R S 12 JUL 2012

B r i a n P i n k

A u s t r a l i a n S t a t i s t i c i a n

Information Paper

Outcomes of the LabourHousehold SurveysContent Review

Australia

2012

! For further information about this publication, contact the Labour Market StatisticsSection on Canberra (02) 6252 7206

I N Q U I R I E S

Produced by the Austra l ian Bureau of Stat ist ics

In all cases the ABS must be acknowledged as the source when reproducing or

quoting any part of an ABS publ icat ion or other product.

This work is copyr ight. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act

1968 , no part may be reproduced by any process without prior written permission

from the Commonwealth. Requests and inquir ies concerning reproduct ion and rights

in this publ icat ion should be addressed to The Manager, Intermediary Management,

Austra l ian Bureau of Stat ist ics, Locked Bag 10, Belconnen ACT 2616, by telephone

(02) 6252 6998, fax (02) 6252 7102, or email :

<[email protected]>.

© Commonwealth of Austral ia 2012

ABS Catalogue No. 6107.0

14Further information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14Dissemination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14Revised program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13Expected timeframe for changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

IM P L E M E N T A T I O N

11Other potential developments that are not being progressed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11Labour Multipurpose Household Survey topics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8Labour supplementary surveys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4The Labour Force Survey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

D I R E C T I O N S FO R AB S LA B O U R HO U S E H O L D SU R V E Y S

3Purpose of this information paper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2Benefits of changing the labour household surveys program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2Consultation with users of ABS labour statistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2Why review the labour household surveys program? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1Background to the review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1The ABS labour household surveys program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

I N T R O D U C T I O N

page

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C O N T E N T S

In late 2010, the ABS commenced a review of its labour household surveys program. The

review aimed to improve the relevance of data released, maximise the coherence of

interrelated topics and minimise the duplication of content. The scope of the review

included the LFS, labour supplementary surveys and labour MPHS topics. Consideration

was given to the program's continued relevance in contemporary labour market

indicators, its ability to meet emerging priorities, and the relationships between content

of the LFS, the supplementary surveys and MPHS topics.

BA C K G R O U N D TO TH E

RE V I E W

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) collects a range of data on the labour market

through its suite of household and business surveys. These data support the compilation

of important economic and social indicators. They provide insight into the economy and

the effects of labour market policy; they are also about people — their participation in

the labour force, success in finding employment, earnings and other benefits, type of

work and working hours.

The labour household survey program currently comprises:

! the monthly Labour Force Survey (LFS), which provides key indicators of the labour

market, including monthly estimates relating to employment, unemployment,

participation, hours worked, and labour force transitions (gross flows); and quarterly

estimates relating to underemployment, underutilisation, industry and occupation;

! a number of labour supplementary surveys, which provide more detailed

information on particular labour market issues and population groups of interest, to

complement and extend the information collected in the LFS; and

! a number of labour topics (collected on a financial year basis) on specific labour

market issues and population groups of interest collected in the Multipurpose

Household Survey (MPHS).

Labour supplementary surveys are currently conducted across five months of the year:

! the Labour Mobility survey and Labour Force Experience survey are conducted

two-yearly in February, in alternate years;

! the Job Search Experience survey is conducted annually in July;

! the Employee Earnings, Benefits and Trade Union Membership (EEBTUM) survey is

conducted annually in August (with an expanded benefits module every six years);

! the Underemployed Workers survey and Persons Not in the Labour Force survey are

both conducted annually in September; and

! the Forms of Employment survey (FOES) is conducted annually in November. This

survey also includes a Working Time Arrangements survey conducted every three

years, a Labour Hire module conducted every three years, and a Locations of Work

survey conducted every six years.

The following labour topics are currently included within the MPHS program:

! Barriers and Incentives to Labour Force Participation (two-yearly);

! Retirement and Retirement Intentions (two-yearly); and

! Work Related Injuries (four-yearly).

In addition to these surveys, the Survey of Employment Arrangements, Retirement and

Superannuation (SEARS) includes a labour component. SEARS was last conducted in

2007.

TH E AB S LA B O U R

HO U S E H O L D SU R V E Y S

PR O G R A M

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I N T R O D U C T I O N

The outcomes of the labour household surveys content review will lead to

improvements across the survey program to provide a more comprehensive suite of

labour statistics. The main advantages are summarised in the four areas below.

! More information will be available from the core LFS, resulting in a richer array of

data with key measures released more frequently. Key data, such as

underemployment and underutilisation rates, will be released monthly rather than

quarterly, while some information that had been released annually from the

supplementary surveys will be released quarterly from the LFS. Some additional

measures will also be included, such as educational attainment and retrenchments.

BE N E F I T S OF CH A N G I N G

TH E LA B O U R HO U S E H O L D

SU R V E Y S PR O G R A M

User consultation was a critical component of the labour household surveys content

review and was conducted in a number of stages. Initial discussions were held with key

users and members of the ABS's Labour Statistics Advisory Group in early 2011, which

shaped some of the broad requirements, potential developments and initial priorities.

A user consultation package, which comprised background information and a range of

questions and issues on which to provide feedback, was then distributed to a wide range

of users in mid 2011. A number of discussions and meetings were held with key users,

who were also encouraged to provide written submissions to the review. A note

outlining the review was included in Australian Labour Market Statistics (cat. no.

6105.0) and on the Labour Topics @ A Glance Page on the ABS web site, inviting

comments.

The consultation process was generally constructive, with many users providing valuable

feedback on unmet needs and priorities, as well as suggestions for improvements to the

survey program. All comments and views were considered, with practicalities, cost and

feasibility of the changes determining the extent to which they were adopted.

CO N S U L T A T I O N W I T H

US E R S OF AB S LA B O U R

ST A T I S T I C S

Over recent years there have been many changes to the structure of the labour market

and the nature of work. It had also been many years since the ABS undertook a holistic

review of its labour household surveys program; many of the current labour surveys have

origins in the 1970's and 1980's, and as a result they, to some extent, reflect an outdated

view of work and the labour market, and the interest therein. Ad-hoc and survey specific

reviews have been conducted from time to time to keep the program as relevant as

possible, but a holistic review was needed to ensure ABS labour statistics continue to

deliver high quality, coherent, conceptually robust and relevant statistics into the future.

There have also been increasing cost pressures on the ABS. As one of the larger survey

programs within the ABS, there was both the potential, and the necessity, to consider

how the program could be refined so that it continues to meet user requirements, but in

a more efficient and effective manner.

WH Y RE V I E W TH E LA B O U R

HO U S E H O L D SU R V E Y S

PR O G R A M ?

Considering all of these aspects of the labour household survey program ensured that

the proposed new program was based on a holistic 'labour household survey information

set' perspective, rather than being constrained on the basis of the existing content of

current surveys.

BA C K G R O U N D TO TH E

RE V I E W continued

2 A B S • OU T C O M E S OF T H E L A B O U R HO U S E H O L D SU R V E Y S CO N T E N T R E V I E W • 6 1 0 7 . 0 • 2 0 1 2

I N T R O D U C T I O N continued

This information paper outlines the intended changes to the labour household survey

program resulting from the review, as well as expected timing for their implementation.

The directions and changes that are outlined in this paper may change subject to testing

and an assessment of statistical impact, to ensure that the changes will not have an

adverse impact on respondent burden or on LFS estimates.

A second information paper is planned to be released in 2014 following testing in late

2013 and early 2014. This subsequent paper will provide more detailed information on

the content of each of the surveys and the dissemination of the statistics.

PU R P O S E OF TH I S

IN F O R M A T I O N PA P E R

! Richer datasets from the labour supplementary surveys, with interrelated topics

combined to better enable analysis of key labour market linkages between groups

and topics, for example earnings with employment arrangements. Some additional,

higher priority data, such as overwork, will be added to the surveys to better inform

on contemporary labour market issues.

! More capacity in the ABS household survey program to run additional

supplementary surveys - either existing topics more frequently or new user funded

surveys to respond to emerging labour or social issues.

! An overall reduction in the burden placed on survey respondents across the labour

household surveys program, due to reduced duplication and better coherence of

content. Despite this overall reduction in respondent burden, there may be a small

increase in average interview times in some specific months, for example August.

BE N E F I T S OF CH A N G I N G

TH E LA B O U R HO U S E H O L D

SU R V E Y S PR O G R A M

continued


I N T R O D U C T I O N continued

There are strong linkages between educational attainment and labour market outcomes,

particularly earnings. Educational attainment is also important in the context of

understanding productivity and the quality of labour inputs.

Educat ional attainment

In addition to headcount underemployment and underutilisation measures, the ABS

produces annual volume measures of underemployment and underutilisation, and

releases them in Australian Labour Market Statistics (cat. no. 6105.0). Volume measures

relate to the quantum of unused potential hours of labour, and are compiled using

information collected in the Job Search Experience survey in July, the Underemployed

Workers survey in September and the LFS in August. They are often more relevant for

analysing the spare capacity of the labour force than headcount measures, as they take

into account the number of hours sought and additional hours preferred by individuals.

From July 2014, the ABS will increase the frequency of the volume measures of labour

underutilisation from annual to quarterly, and change the source from the Job Search

Experience and Underemployed Workers supplementary surveys to the quarterly

module of the LFS.

Volume measures of

labour underut i l isat ion

Underemployment is increasingly being recognised as a key measure of spare capacity in

the labour market, and a significant economic and social issue. In the late 1970s and

1980s, the underemployment rate was considerably lower than the unemployment rate,

and there were approximately half as many underemployed people as unemployed

people. In more recent times, the number underemployed workers has been

significantly higher than the number of unemployed.

Currently, underemployment estimates are released quarterly. They are also not available

to the same level of detail as unemployment estimates.

From July 2014, the ABS will increase the reporting frequency of the underemployment

rate and labour force underutilisation rate from quarterly to monthly. The

underemployment and underutilisation information will be integrated into LFS output so

it accompanies unemployment information.

In addition to the changes identified above, the ABS also plans to increase the scope of

the underemployment measures to include all employed people. The current approach

to underemployment statistics only asks people who are employed part-time if they are

wanting, and available, to work more hours. The change will ask all employed people

about whether they want, and are available, to work more hours.

Measures of

underemployment

A number of developments are planned in relation to the content of the LFS that will

improve conceptual robustness and relevance of the survey, improve the frequency and

timeliness of key data, or enable critical labour market linkages that are not currently

possible.

TH E LA B O U R FO R C E

SU R V E Y

A number of changes are planned for the core monthly and quarterly LFS,the labour supplementary surveys, and the labour MPHS topics. Theseproposed changes are discussed below. As noted, the exact details maychange subject to testing and an assessment of statistical impact.


D I R E C T I O N S F O R A B S L A B O U R H O U S E H O L D S U R V E Y S

Following the discontinuation of the private sector component of the Survey of

Employment and Earnings (SEE) in 2002, the ability for the ABS to provide a simple

measure of 'sector of employment' has been limited. While some information can be

obtained from the EEBTUM supplementary survey or other economic surveys, the review

found significant unmet demand for robust estimates of sector of employment from a

range of users.

Public and private sector

information

The nature of employment in Australia has become more diverse over the past two

decades, with growth in forms of employment other than the 'traditional' arrangement of

full-time, ongoing wage or salary job, with regular hours and paid leave. One such form

of employment is casual work. Casual employment is of particular interest because of

concerns about the working conditions, career opportunities and job security of casual

workers compared with other employees.

There is no single measure of casual employment, given the myriad of contexts in which

casual work can be considered. However the most objective (and commonly used)

measure of casual employment relates to the entitlement to paid holiday and sick leave,

i.e. employees who do not have an entitlement to paid holiday leave or paid sick leave

are regarded as casual. Other measures, such as whether someone identifies as a casual,

or whether they have a guaranteed minimum number of hours, are also useful, albeit

more subjective.

At present, entitlements to paid holiday leave and paid sick leave are collected in a

number of supplementary surveys. However, it is not possible to easily produce a

coherent time series as the data are contained in different datasets and in some cases

based on only subsets of the employed population.

To improve the coherence of the time series of data available, and to increase the

prominence and visibility of the data, entitlements to paid holiday and paid sick leave will

be collected in the LFS on a quarterly basis, and incorporated into the LFS product set.

Casual work

At present, educational attainment information is not collected in the LFS, and is only

available from the MPHS and selected labour supplementary surveys. While the Survey of

Education and Work (SEW) provides a comprehensive source of educational attainment

information cross-classified with key labour force indicators, it is only conducted

annually and does not include other labour market and employment-related

characteristics.

From July 2014, the ABS will include educational attainment in the LFS on a monthly

basis. This information will be collected from respondents who are in the 'incoming

rotation group' of the survey, and will be 'rolled forward' for subsequent months (that is,

respondents will only be asked about their educational attainment in their first month in

the survey, with that information carried over for the respondent's subsequent seven

months in the survey). For people who are currently studying (whose educational

attainment may change over the course of their participation in the LFS), information

will be sought throughout the LFS period on changes to their educational attainment.

Educational attainment information will therefore be available in the monthly LFS

product set, as well as in all labour supplementary surveys and MPHS topics.

Educat ional attainment

continued


D I R E C T I O N S F O R A B S L A B O U R H O U S E H O L D S U R V E Y S continued

Information on retrenchments is critical to understanding the performance of the labour

market, particularly during economic downturns. Currently, retrenchment information is

available from the two-yearly Labour Mobility supplementary survey. However the data

are limited due to the frequency of the survey (every 2 years) and scope of

retrenchments (during the 12 month period up to the survey).

Retrenchment data for the unemployed population can also be obtained on a quarterly

basis from the LFS, although it is not available in any standard product. The article

Retrenched Unemployed People in the April 2010 issue of Australian Labour Market

Statistics (cat. no. 6105.0) provided an analysis of retrenchment using LFS data, and was

well-received by key users. However, it could not include all retrenchments because the

LFS does not currently identify people who had been retrenched and either

subsequently found another job or are now not in the labour force.

Retrenchment

There are currently two main employment classifications used in labour statistics: Status

in Employment and Employment Type. The LFS uses the Status in Employment

classification for its standard output, while the labour supplementary surveys (and other

social surveys) predominantly use the Employment Type classification.

Status in Employment is necessary in the context of national accounting and the

measurement of income, as 'compensation of employees' (the largest component of

gross domestic product) is based on the System of National Accounts definition of

'employee'. However, it does not provide the most useful representation for analysis of

the labour market.

The Employment Type classification is considered preferable for most labour market

analyses. Unlike Status in Employment, Employment Type aims to capture the

fundamental nature of employment, that is, whether a person works for an employer or

operates their own business, regardless of the legal status of that business. This means

that in the Status in Employment classification, people who operate their own

incorporated enterprise (Owner Managers of Incorporate Enterprises - OMIEs) are

included in the Employees category, whereas in the Employment type category, this

group is identified separately within the Employee category.

To overcome the complexities, and potential misinterpretation or comparison of data,

the ABS will be revising the Status in Employment classification so that it provides a

single labour market relevant classification that can meet all uses. This will be achieved

by removing OMIEs from the Employees category and having them separately identified.

As a result, the Employment Type classification will no longer be required.

While the Status in Employment classification will be different, there will effectively be no

break in LFS series as the categories will be conceptually consistent and able to be

aggregated or disaggregated to match the previous version of the Status in Employment

classification and the Employment Type classification.

Employment

class i f icat ions

From 2014, the ABS will include public and private sector employment estimates each

quarter in the LFS product set. The information required to produce this information is

already collected on a quarterly basis as part of the collection and coding of industry

data, and will be added to the processing and compilation of LFS estimates.

Public and private sector

information continued



'Gross flows' shows movements of people between the different labour force status from

one month to the next, rather than just the status at a point in time. By considering the

sample that responded to the LFS in consecutive months, the labour force status for

both months can be compared. The rotating sample design of the LFS means that only

about 80% of the sample for any given month can be matched to the corresponding

record in the previous month, with the other 20% being people who are new to the

sample, leaving the sample, or sample loss. Currently, 'gross flows' data are published

using the weights from the 80% of the sample, which means the estimates only cover

approximately 80% of the population (13.7 million out of 17.7 million). This limits their

usefulness.

Improv ing 'gross flows'

data

While estimates of employment from the LFS refer to counts of employed people rather

than the number of jobs, there is continued interest from users and commentators in the

number of jobs in the labour force, particularly in relation to full-time and part-time jobs.

Multiple job holding is the main reason why estimates of employment from the LFS

cannot be equated to estimates of jobs. The LFS does capture the existence of multiple

job-holding on a monthly basis, through identifying people with more than one job, but

this information is not included in any standard product.

Using the information that is already collected, the ABS intends to release more

information from the LFS on the number of jobs in the labour market, to complement

the measures of total employment.

Number of jobs in the

economy

The LFS collects information from unemployed people on whether they are looking for

full-time or part-time work. However, the current sequencing of the survey questionnaire

results in people being asked if they are looking for part-time work only if they indicate

that they have not been looking for full-time work. As a result, people who have looked

for both full-time work and part-time work are not identified.

From July 2014, the ABS will change the sequencing of the LFS questions on full-time or

part-time job search so that all unemployed people are asked whether they are looking

for either full-time work, part-time work, or both.

Full- t ime and part-t ime

job search

Information on the continuous duration with a current employer/business is currently

collected from employed people in the LFS on a quarterly basis. While a considerable

amount of detail is captured on the durations of less than one year, no detail is collected

on durations of more than one year. Only FOES collects more detailed breakdowns of

periods over one year (e.g. single years between 1 and 20 years, and 'More than 20

years').

From July 2014, the ABS will collect more detailed information on duration with current

employer/business in the LFS on a quarterly basis. These data will be released as part of

the quarterly LFS product set as well as the labour supplementary surveys.

Durat ion with current

employer/business

To address the need for a comprehensive and frequent measure of retrenchment,

information on retrenchment will be collected every quarter in the LFS and incorporated

into the LFS product set. The quarterly retrenchment information will inform on all

people aged 15 years and over who had been retrenched or made redundant in the past

three months, irrespective of their current labour force status.

Retrenchment continued



A key outcome of the review is the consolidation of the labour supplementary surveys

program into two surveys per year - run in February and August. One of the main

considerations during the review was to design a program that was more coherent, and

maximised the value of the information collected by ensuring that, as far as practicable,

all data relevant to an area of the labour market was collected at the same time, and

included within the same dataset. The proposed content for the two supplementary

surveys has been developed based on an assessment of the subject matter and an

analysis of user requirements, and will result in a more streamlined, less fragmented,

program of labour supplementary surveys.

LA B O U R SU P P L E M E N T A R Y

SU R V E Y S

Data relating to industry of employment is currently available on a quarterly basis from

the LFS. The review found strong user demand for industry information to be available

on a monthly, rather than quarterly, basis. The current approach to collecting industry

information on a quarterly basis could not be applied to the monthly collection, as it

would result in even more volatile series, present an unacceptable burden on

respondents, and is likely to have prohibitive costs.

Alternative approaches to producing industry data on a monthly basis from the LFS are

being investigated, and the ABS will develop a strategy for monthly industry estimates in

consultation with key users.

Monthly industry

est imates

The development of the 'aggregate monthly hours worked' series has been one of the

most important developments in the LFS in recent years. Users have found the

information invaluable in better understanding labour productivity and the performance

of the labour market and economy, particularly during economic downturns. Currently

the data are available for full-time/part-time status by sex; state; and industry sector.

The review found a strong demand for further disaggregations of aggregate monthly

hours worked data, particularly full-time/part-time status by state by sex; and by industry

division. As a result, aggregate monthly hours worked will be expanded to include a

number of new series to meet this demand.

Aggregate monthly hours

worked

The review found that there is increasing demand from users for access to microdata to

analyse people's transitions into and out of employment and unemployment, rather than

solely using the standard LFS products or customised requests relating to point-in-time

estimates. The ABS released a longitudinal Labour Force and Supplementary Surveys

Confidentialised Unit Record File (CURF) in December 2012. This CURF provides a rich

source of detailed labour market dynamics data, and will enable users and researchers to

analyse the longitudinal microdata to gain a better understanding of people's movements

over time in the labour market.

The CURF is available through the ABS's Remote Access Data Laboratory, with the first

release of the CURF containing data for the months January 2008 to December 2010.

Updates to the CURF are expected be released on an annual basis.

Longitudinal Labour Force

Survey Confident ial ised

Unit Record File

The ABS intends to improve the 'gross flow' estimates by making them more

representative of the full sample and publish more information on the changing nature

of the Labour Force sample.

Improv ing 'gross flows'

data continued



The August supplementary survey (Characteristics of Employment) will describe the key

features of people's employment. It will integrate the Employee Earnings, Benefits and

Trade Union Membership (EEBTUM), Forms of Employment (FOES), Working Time

Arrangements (WTA) and Labour Hire (LH) surveys into one.

The Locations of Work (LOW) survey, which is a six-yearly module also collected in

conjunction with FOES, will be ceased as some information on locations of work is

collected on the same frequency in the Survey of Employment Arrangements,

Retirement and Superannuation (SEARS).

The survey will inform users on the following broad labour market issues:

! earnings - in main job and all jobs

! employment arrangements

! trade union membership

! non-standard employment

! independent contracting

! work scheduling

! job security

! job flexibility

Including this range of topics into a single survey will result in a dataset that will enable

analysis of the full range of key elements of people's employment and related outcomes.

While EEBTUM, FOES and WTA have all collected information describing people's

employment, each only provided part of the picture for understanding people's

employment and related outcomes.

While the content of the August survey will largely be based on existing content, there

are some changes that will be made to better inform on important issues. In particular,

the survey will incorporate information on overwork, which was regarded as a high

priority by many users during the consultation.

Due to the large amount of planned content, and to reflect that some of the data items

are not required at an annual frequency, the August supplementary survey will comprise

a core annual component, comprising around 2/3 of the overall content, with the

remaining content included every two years on a rotating basis. The core component will

contain question modules on characteristics of employment such as earnings,

employment arrangements, job flexibility and trade union membership. The first of the

two biennial modules will contain more detailed questions on earnings, trade union

The August survey:

Character ist ics of

Employment

The changes are not expected to add significantly to respondent burden or to the

average interview times in the respective months. This is due to reduced duplication in

monthly content, the mutually exclusive nature of respondent groups within each of the

surveys, and the dropping of some lower priority content. The overall outcome is

expected to result in an overall reduction in respondent burden over the survey

program.

The content of the two supplementary surveys are outlined in more detail below. The

final content will be subject to testing and an assessment of statistical impact, to ensure

that the changes to the surveys will not have an adverse impact on respondent burden or

on LFS estimates.

LA B O U R SU P P L E M E N T A R Y

SU R V E Y S continued



The move to create two consolidated supplementary surveys will involve a change in

collection month for a number of the existing supplementary survey topics, namely:

! JSE, UEW and PNILF will move from their current July or September months, to

February.

! FOES, WTA and LH will move from their current November month to August

There is a risk that changes to the collection month and consolidation of the JSE, PNILF

and UEW surveys will impact on comparisons of the data over a number of years, due to

the potential for seasonal variations in the experiences of some of these groups.

Impact of moving

supplementary survey

col lect ion months

The February supplementary survey (Participation, Job Search and Mobility) will inform

on unemployment, underemployment, labour force participation, job change and job

search. It will integrate the key elements of the Labour Mobility, Job Search Experience

(JSE), Underemployed Workers (UEW) and Persons Not in the Labour Force (PNILF)

surveys into one. Labour Force Experience (LFE), which is currently run every two years

alternating with Labour Mobility, will be ceased as the release of the longitudinal LFS

CURF will enable better analysis of labour force transitions.

The survey will inform users on the following broad labour market issues:

! job change

! job mobility

! job search

! participation and increasing participation

! underemployment

! marginal attachment.

Including this range of topics into a single survey will result in a dataset that will enable

analysis of people's experiences relating to job search, job change and increasing

participation. While JSE, UEW, PNILF and Labour Mobility have all collected information

describing people's transitions within and out of the labour force, each only provided

part of the picture for understanding labour force participation and related outcomes.

While the content of the February survey will largely be based on existing content, there

are some changes that will be made to better inform on important issues. In particular,

the survey will expand information collected on job search (and job churn), by adding to

information already collected on job search by the unemployed, by asking whether

employed people looked for a job (and if so, the steps taken) and asking those not in the

labour force who looked for work the steps they took. It will also provide more

comprehensive information on geographic mobility, by broadening the scope of the data

items on whether people would be prepared to move interstate or intrastate for a job to

the unemployed, employed and some people not in the labour force.

The February survey:

Part ic ipat ion, Job Search

and Mobil i ty

membership, independent contracting, and labour hire. The second of the two biennial

modules will contain more detailed questions on job flexibility, stability and scheduling.

The August survey:


Employment continued



Temporary migrants may make a significant contribution to parts of the labour market,

and there is demand to obtain more robust and frequent estimates of the labour force

characteristics of this group, particularly in the context of labour shortages and the

government's skilled migration programs. Information on the type of visa possessed by

Residency and visa status

A range of other issues and data gaps were raised during the user consultation and were

considered in the review, but are not being progressed by the ABS at this stage. These

are discussed briefly below.

OT H E R PO T E N T I A L

DE V E L O P M E N T S TH A T AR E

NO T BE I N G PR O G R E S S E D

The scope of Barriers and Incentives to Labour Force Participation is currently restricted

to people who are working 15 hours or fewer per week (in addition to those who are not

currently working), as they have been considered to be the group who could provide the

largest additional contribution (in hours) to labour supply. Because people working

more than 15 hours are also likely to want to work additional hours - and account for the

majority of underemployed people - the scope of the topic will be expanded to provide a

more comprehensive picture to inform on increasing participation amongst those who

are already working.

From the next survey in 2012–13, the ABS has increased the scope to people working

fewer than 35 hours per week (in addition to those who are not currently working).

Currently, information on incentives for increased participation is only collected every

second time the Barriers and Incentives to Labour Force Participation survey is

conducted (i.e. every four years). However, it is considered a fundamental part of the

survey and worth being collected on a more frequent basis. The ABS will therefore

include this information as a core component of the Barriers and Incentives to Labour

Force Participation MPHS topic, collecting the data every two years from 2012–13.

The increase in scope and frequency may require a slight reduction in overall survey

content in 2014–15. Investigations on the impact and resulting content will be

progressed in the development of the 2014–15 survey.

Barr iers and Incent ives to

Labour Force Part ic ipat ion

While the review was primarily focussed on the content of the LFS and labour

supplementary surveys, it also considered the MPHS topics, including the

inter-relationships between the topics, their timing and their frequency. Apart from some

small improvements to the Barriers and Incentives to Labour Force Participation topic,

the content and frequency of the labour MPHS topics will remain largely unchanged.

LA B O U R MU L T I P U R P O S E

HO U S E H O L D SU R V E Y

TO P I C S

In order to better understand the impacts that the change in timing will have, all three

surveys (JSE, PNILF and UEW) will be conducted in February 2014 in a format that is

similar to their current format. This means that PNILF and UEW will be conducted in

September 2013 and then again in February 2014. In February 2015, the new

Participation, Job Search and Mobility survey will be begin.

The ABS also intends to provide information from available data sources - particularly the

LFS - to assist users in understanding the impact of changing months, to support the

transition from July and September to the February reference period. This will assist

users to more easily determine the differences that may be attributed to changes in

collection month.

Impact of moving


col lect ion months continued



Other areas that came up in the review, but will not be progressed relate to the

collection of information on:

! methods of setting pay;

! dollar value of casual loadings;

! more frequent earnings data;

! journey to work and fly-in fly-out work;

! skill-based underemployment; and

! job and skills mismatch.

While it is recognised that these are important issues and would add value to the survey

program, concerns about accurate data collection, as well as relative priorities amongst

the other requirements, mean that these were not able to be incorporated into the

proposed program at this time.

Other gaps

The review considered the need for increasing the frequency of the annual families

estimates released from the LFS. While it is acknowledged there is user demand for more

frequent families estimates, this would require the production of the families

benchmarks on a more frequent basis, for which funding and resources are currently

unavailable. As a result of this, and the relatively stable nature of family dynamics, the

families estimates will continue to be released on an annual basis.

Famil ies est imates

recent migrants is collected in the Characteristics of Recent Migrants supplementary

survey, which is conducted on a three-yearly basis. However, there is no more frequent

measure of this group.

Consideration was given to collecting information on residency and visa status in the

LFS. While this is an important issue, concerns about the effect that collecting this

information would have on the LFS, as well as the suitability of the Any Responsible Adult

methodology, mean that this issue will not be pursued any further in considering the

content of the survey program. Other strategies for supporting this information need will

be investigated in due course.

Residency and visa status

continued



Improvements to the Barriers and Incentives to Labour Force Participation MPHS topic

from the content review have been implemented for enumeration from July 2012. Key

milestones in the implementation are outlined below.

July 2012 Commence Barriers and Incentives to Labour Force Participation

June 2013 Conclude enumeration

Dec 2013 Release results

Mult ipurpose Household

Survey

The new Participation, Job Search and Mobility supplementary survey is expected to be

implemented in February 2015. As noted above, the JSE, PNILF and UEW surveys will be

conducted in February 2014 in a format that is similar to their current format. This means

that Persons Not In the Labour Force will be conducted in September 2013 and then

again in February 2014. In February 2015 the new integrated Participation, Job Search

and Mobility survey will begin. Key milestones in the implementation are outlined below.

Early-to-mid 2014 Development and testing

Feb 2014 Collect existing JSE and PNILF/UEW content in February

July 2014 JSE not conducted in July

Sep 2014 PNILF/UEW not conducted in September

Feb 2015 Collection of new Participation, Job Search and Mobility survey

Late 2015 Release results

Part ic ipat ion, Job Search

and Mobil i ty


The new Characteristics of Employment supplementary survey is expected to be

implemented in August 2014. Key milestones in the implementation are outlined below.

Mid-to-late 2013 Development and testing

Aug 2014 Collection of new Characteristics of Employment survey

Nov 2014 FOES not conducted in November

Early-to-mid 2015 Release results


Employment


Improvements to the LFS from the content review are expected to be implemented into

the collection from July 2014. Key milestones in the implementation are outlined below.

Some improvements that are not dependent on changes to the survey questionnaire,

such as the Longitudinal LFS CURF, may be implemented outside of the timeframes

below.

Mid-to-late 2013 Development and testing

July 2014 Implementation of new monthly LFS content

Aug 2014 Implementation of new quarterly LFS content

Late 2014 Release results of new monthly content

Late 2014 Release results of new quarterly content

Labour Force Survey

The outcomes of the labour household surveys content review will be implemented in

2014 and 2015, following testing and an assessment of statistical impact to be completed

in late 2013 and early 2014. More detail is provided below for each of the main

components of the program.

EX P E C T E D T I M E F R A M E

FO R CH A N G E S


I M P L E M E N T A T I O N

A second information paper is planned to be released in 2014 following testing in late

2013 and early 2014. This subsequent paper will provide more detailed information on

the content of each of the surveys and the dissemination of the statistics.

For further information, please contact the Labour Market Statistics Section on

(02) 6252 7206 or email <[email protected]>.

FU R T H E R IN F O R M A T I O N

It is recognised that dissemination of both the expanded content in the LFS and the new

supplementary surveys is of considerable interest to users. As a result, a comprehensive

dissemination strategy will be developed, in consultation with key users. This will

consider the number and format of products, and will include microdata dissemination

options.

D I S S E M I N A T I O N

Participation, Job Search and MobilityLabour MobilityFeb 2016

Forms of Employment; Labour Hire; Locations of WorkNov 2015

Persons Not in the Labour Force; Underemployed WorkersSep 2015

Characteristics of Employment (core); Characteristics ofEmployment (expanded - job flexibility, security and scheduling)

Employee Earnings, Benefits and Trade Union Membership; MultipleJob-Holders

Aug 2015

Job Search ExperienceJuly 20152015–16

Participation, Job Search and MobilityLabour Force ExperienceFeb 2015

Forms of Employment; Labour Hire; Locations of WorkNov 2014

Persons Not in the Labour Force; Underemployed WorkersSep 2014

Characteristics of Employment (core); Characteristics ofEmployment (expanded - trade union membership, contracting,labour hire)

Employee Earnings, Benefits and Trade Union Membership; MultipleJob-Holders

Aug 2014

Job Search ExperienceJuly 20142014–15

Job Search Experience; Persons Not in the Labour Force;Underemployed Workers

Labour MobilityFeb 2014

Forms of EmploymentForms of EmploymentNov 2013

Persons Not in the Labour Force; Underemployed WorkersPersons Not in the Labour Force; Underemployed WorkersSep 2013

Employee Earnings, Benefits and Trade Union MembershipEmployee Earnings, Benefits and Trade Union MembershipAug 2013

Job Search ExperienceJob Search ExperienceJuly 20132013–14

Labour MobilityLabour Force ExperienceFeb 2013

Forms of Employment; Working Time ArrangementsForms of Employment; Working Time ArrangementsNov 2012

Persons Not in the Labour Force; Underemployed WorkersPersons Not in the Labour Force; Underemployed WorkersSep 2012

Employee Earnings, Benefits and Trade Union MembershipEmployee Earnings, Benefits and Trade Union MembershipAug 2012

Job Search ExperienceJob Search ExperienceJuly 20122012–13

New programOld program

The following table sets out the revised supplementary survey program compared with

the prior program, for the next three years.

RE V I S E D PR O G R A M


I M P L E M E N T A T I O N continued

www.abs.gov.auWEB ADDRESS

All statistics on the ABS website can be downloaded freeof charge.

F R E E A C C E S S T O S T A T I S T I C S

Client Services, ABS, GPO Box 796, Sydney NSW 2001POST

1300 135 211FAX

[email protected]

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Our consultants can help you access the full range ofinformation published by the ABS that is available free ofcharge from our website. Information tailored to yourneeds can also be requested as a 'user pays' service.Specialists are on hand to help you with analytical ormethodological advice.

I N F O R M A T I O N A N D R E F E R R A L S E R V I C E

www.abs.gov.au the ABS website is the best place fordata from our publications and information about the ABS.

INTERNET

F O R M O R E I N F O R M A T I O N . . .

© Commonwealth of Australia 2012Produced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics

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